NEW BERN, NC (WNCT) – A North Carolina 69-year-old's comment posted on Barack Obama's Facebook page, which has more than 30 million likes, has unleashed a flood of complaints about potential voter fraud.
Jim Turner admits he wrote the following on the president's Facebook page:
"I have voted once in Beaufort, once in Henderson, twice in Emerald Isle, and will vote in my precinct in Pine Knoll Shores. I will do whatever it takes to save our country from the world envisioned by Mitt Romney."
The idea someone could have voted four times in one election ignited fury on WNCT's Facebook page.
"Did he really do this, or is it someone's idea of a sick joke. If he did do this how did he even get away with it?" Lisa Lavender wrote.
Don Wright, with the state board of elections office, says it is a felony to vote more than once during an election.
"We are going to further investigate this matter, and turn our findings over to the district attorney, who will have the ultimate decision whether to prosecute Mr. Turner or not," Wright said.
Meanwhile, Turner's family said they're now receiving death threats. Turner released a statement Monday trying to explain.
"My daughter posted a "Like" on Barack Obama's Facebook page about early voting. Thinking I was responding just to my daughter, I made a silly comment joking that I had voted at several different election sites. Not knowing I was posting to Barack Obama's page rather than just to my daughter, this comment, made in total jest, has gone viral and has made many people angry."
Turner is now apologizing for the difficulty this has created for state election officials.
